A. Ultimately, it was to show Israel that the Lord desired the very best for them.
B. It was to emphasize that the problem does not originate with God but with man.
C. Verse 5 gives us an important condition: “If only you carefully listen to the voice of the Lord your God.”
D. All of the above.
ANSWER
D. All of the above.
There is no contradiction. The key is found in verse 5. God says there would be no poor among them if they carefully obeyed the voice of the Lord their God. That was God’s desire for Israel. His commandments were intended to produce a society marked by justice, generosity, responsibility, and care for one another.
But then comes verse 11, “The poor will never cease to be in the land.” Why? Because God knew Israel and knew they would not always obey His Word.
The contradiction is not in the Word of God but in our actions despite our position in Messiah. We know the importance of reading and studying the Word, allowing it to change and transform our lives. We know the importance of discipline. We know the way, yet knowing it is not the same as walking in it. It is often much easier to follow the path of those whom Revelation calls “the dwellers of the earth” than to listen carefully to the Lord’s voice.
And perhaps that is one of the great lessons of Deuteronomy 15. God showed Israel what life could be like under His blessings. The tragedy was not that God withheld the blessing, but that His people so often refused the path to it.